A call for a Dallas convention

By Charles Mahtesian

09/05/12 11:42 AM EDT

As Charlotte basks in the national spotlight surrounding the Democratic National Convention — and on the heels of San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro’s keynote speech Tuesday night — the Dallas Morning News editorial board calls for Dallas to make a convention bid for 2016.

The GOP convention would make for a natural fit in Republican Texas. The city’s business climate squares with Republican sensibilities. And, by 2016, the George W. Bush Presidential Center at Southern Methodist University will have been open for three years.

But city leaders shouldn’t pitch Dallas only to Republicans. The political climate has changed rapidly, with Democrats sweeping up in local elections for judges and county officials. Like Houston, Dallas is turning more blue than red. Democrats nationally may want to capitalize on that shift and compete for votes in a Republican state.

The last time Dallas held a convention was 1984; the last Texas convention was the 1992 GOP gala in Houston.

With a handful of Texas pols now in the national spotlight — among them, Castro, Republican Ted Cruz and GOP Gov. Rick Perry — and Democrats convinced that demographics will drive the GOP’s lone reliable mega-state in their direction sometime in the near future, a Dallas bid will be one to watch.